Apparatus for applying rail anchors

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for applying rail anchors to railroad track rails comprising a frame carrying rail wheels and having an anchor applying assembly pivotally mounted thereon. The anchor applying assembly having spaced heads, one of which is movable relative to the other and both of which are rotatable about one of the rods. Each head including means for carrying an anchor beneath a rail and hanging the anchor on the rail base including means for moving the anchor carrying means from an upper anchor loading position into a lower anchor hanging position. Means for moving one head relative to the other head to firmly hold the anchors against a tie or a tie plate and anchor pressing means to press the anchors onto the rail base.

United States Patent [72] Inventors Carl L. Fester New Kenslngton; Paul S. Settle, Jr., Fox Chapel Borough, both 01, Pa.

[21] Appl. No. 825,362

[22] Filed May 16, 1969 [45] Patented June 22, 1971 [73] Assignee Railway Maintenance Corporation Pittsburgh, Pa.

[54] APPARATUS FOR APPLYING RAIL ANCHORS 9 Claims, 22 Drawing Figs.

[521 US. Cl 104/17 [51] Int. Cl. E0lb 29/32 [50] Field olSeareh....- 104/2, 17 A, 1,2, 17; 173/90, 95

[S61 Relerenees Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 3,095,826 7/1963 Swanson 104/2 3,117,530 1/1964 Miller 104/2 3,121,400 2/1964 Giebel et al 104/2 3,135,222 6/1964 D'Angelo 104/2 3,272,148 9/ 1966 Mcllrath 104/2 3,326,137 6/ 1967 McTighe et a1 104/2 Primary Examiner-Arthur L. La Point Assistant Examiner-Richard A. Bcrtsch Attorney-Webb, Burden, Robinson and Webb ABSTRACT: Apparatus for applying rail anchors to railroad track rails comprising a frame carrying rail wheels and having an anchor applying assembly pivotally mounted thereon. The anchor applying assembly having spaced heads, one of which is movable relative to the other and both of which are rotatable about one of the rods. Each head including means for carrying an anchor beneath a rail and hanging the anchor on the rail base including means for moving the anchor carrying means from an upper anchor loading position into a lower anchor hanging position. Means for moving one head relative to the other head to firmly hold the anchors against a tie or a tie plate and anchor pressing means to press the anchors onto the rail base.

PMENTEUJUNZHSYI 3.585.936

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THE//? A TTOHNE YS PATENTEUJUN2219YI 3585936 SHEET 9 [IF 9 Fig. /9 I6 Fig. /8 0 Ca Fes/e Paul 5. Self/e, r.

THE/f? ATTORNEYS APPARATUS FOR APPLYING RAIL ANCHORS SPECIFICATION This invention relates generally to the application of rail anchors to railroad track rails and specifically to apparatus for automatically hanging anchors on the rail base, squeezing them against a tie or a tie plate and pressing them onto the rail base.

Railroad track rails are secured to ties by tie plates and spikes which prevent the rails from moving in a direction parallel to the ties. However, longitudinal forces parallel to the rails are created by such things as acceleration and braking of trains, expansion and contraction of the rails due to temperature changes and wave motion caused by the wheels of loaded cars traveling over the track. Rail anchors are applied to the rail base along the rail to prevent such longitudinal movement. The anchors are firmly engaged on the rail base and are tightly pressed against the face of ties and/or the plates. It is important that the anchors are tightly applied against the ties or tie plates so that they can resist the longitudinal forces exerted upon the rails. When anchors are not used, the longitudinal movement of the rail is transmitted to the ties, and the ties rotate which loosens the ballast. Anchors may be used with each tie or with spaced ties and may be applied against both sides of a tie or against only one side depending upon the condition and intended use of the track.

A rail anchor is basically a U-shaped or C-shaped member of spring-like metal which is capable of spanning the base of the rail. The anchor is initially positioned transversely of the rail with one end hooked on an edge of the base. The other end of the anchor includes a portion adapted to snap over the opposite edge of the rail base when the anchor is pressed into position. Depending upon the configuration of the anchor, an upward force or a horizontal force is required to press the anchor onto the rail base. As will appear hereinafter, only a minor change in the anchor carrying and pressing mechanism makes the apparatus of our invention capable of applying all types of anchors.

Rail anchors are presently positioned on the rail base by hand and are driven onto the base and against a tie with a hammer or by a driving machine. Manually or the anchors into position is difficult and time consuming and is unpredictable since the grip of the anchor on the rail base and the pressure against the tie faces will vary. Additionally, impact driving on anchors with either a hammer or a machine is dangerous since the anchors may fly off the rail base and cause injury to either personnel or equipment. The use of a machine to dive the anchors into position is an improvement over manually driving the anchors but, nevertheless, is time consuming as the anchors are manually hung on the rail base prior to being driven into position.

Our invention permits anchors to be automatically hung on the rail base, squeezed into engagement with a tie and snapped into position onto the base. No impact occurs between the anchor and the driving member, and, therefore, the danger of an anchor flying off the base is eliminated. Our apparatus permits rapid and inexpensive application of rail anchors by a single machine operator.

Our apparatus makes it possible to hang an anchor on either side of a tie or to substantially simultaneously hand anchors on both sides of a tie. After the anchor o anchors are in position, a squeezing force is applied to press each anchor into position against the tie face.

In the accompanying drawings, we have shown preferred embodiments of our invention in which:

FIG. I is a plan view of the apparatus;

FIG. 2 is a section on line II-II of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front elevation of an anchor applicating assembly in the lower position;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are front elevations of the anchor press heads showing the sequence of squeezing a pair of anchors against the faces of a tie;

FIG. 6 is a side elevation of the applicating assembly in the upper anchor loading position;

FIG. 7 is a side elevation of the applicating assembly of FIG. 6 in an intermediate position.

FIG. 8 is a side elevation of the applicating assembly of FIG. 6 in a lower position;

FIG. 9 is a side elevation of the applicating assembly of FIG. 6 with an anchor partially beneath a rail;

FIG. 10 is a side elevation of the applicating assembly of FIG. 6 in the lower or anchor driving position;

FIG. 11 is an enlarged side elevation of the anchor carrying and driving mechanism;

FIG. 12 is a section on line XII-XII of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a side elevation showing a derailing bar used with the embodiment of FIGS. 6-12;

FIG. 14 is a side elevation of an alternative embodiment of the applicating assembly in the anchor driving position;

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of a hydraulic circuit for operating the apparatus.

FIGS. 16, 17 and 18 are side elevations of anchors requiring a vertical pressing force; and

FIGS. 19, 20, 21 and 22 are side elevations of anchors requiring a horizontal pressing force.

Referring to 152 l and 2 of the drawings, our apparatus consists of a main frame having side rails 1 and 2 and a center rail 3. A deck 4 is carried on the frame rails and rail wheels 5 are mounted on the side rails. An engine 6 for moving the machine along track rails RR and RL is carried on the forward end of deck 4. A boom 7 for loading heavy equipment and anchors onto the machine is carried by a mast 8 located at the rear of the machine. Anchors are carried on the machine in a well-known container (not shown) which is connected to a chute 9 for supplying the anchors to a position adjacent to the machine operator. A platform 10 extends from deck 4 and carries a seat 11 and a control console 12. A centerlift cylinder 13 is located below deck 4 for rotating the machine so that anchors may be applied to either rail RR or rail RL.

The anchor applicating assembly 15 is supported on deck 4 by spaced brackets 20 and 21 welded onto frame side rail 2. Each bracket receives the lower end of an assembly arm 22, and an elongated pivot rod 23 extends through holes in brackets 20 and 21 and through aligned holes in the arms to pivotally mount arms 22 on the frame. Arms 22 are pivoted about rod 23 and adjusted relative to deck 4 by a head raise cylinder 24. The free end of cylinder rod 25 is pivotally attached to a bracket 26 carried by a crossmember 27 attached between arms 22, and the free end of cylinder 24 is pivotally attached to a bracket 28 carried on frame member 3. Extension of rod 25 from cylinder 24 raises arms 22 relative to the deck, and contraction of the rod moves the arms downwardly toward the deck.

Individual anchor press heads 29 and 30 are substantially identical, and like reference numerals are used for like parts in the following description of the heads and in the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 6, the free end of each arm 22 welded to a short arm 31, and an arm 32 is welded between arms 22 and 31 to provide a rigid frame. Each arm 32 has an aperture 33 in its free end, and a head pivot rod 34 extends through apertures 33. Head pivot rod 34 is attached to a parallel rod 35 by a cross link 36 for a purpose described hereinafter. Each head includes a long side plate 50 and a short side plate 51 spaced therefrom. The plates have aligned holes which receive rods 34 and 35, and rear head 30 is fixed in place on the rods by a mechanical locking shoulder (not shown). Each long plate 50 is spaced from its corresponding short plate 51 by collars 52 with the short plates of the heads in facing relationship. The collars for forward head 29 are elongated so that the head can slide along rods 34 and 35.

As can be best seen in FIGS. 11 and 12, each head include an anchor press bar 60 pivoted on a pin 61 extending between plates 50 and 51. One end of press bar 60 carries a bracket 62, and an anchor press cylinder 63 has its rod 64 pivotally connected to the bracket by a pin 65. The upper end of cylinder 63 is pivotally connected to a pin extending between plates 50 and 51. A contact plate 66 is carried on the other end of press bar 60, and extension of rod 64 from cylinder 63 pivots press bar 60 about pin 65 to force plate 66 into contact with an anchor A hanging on the rail base to exert a horizontal force on the anchor and press it onto the base. A rail clamp 67 is pivotally mounted adjacent the lower end of plate 50 by a pin 68, and shelf 67 is mounted on the rail clamp for carrying an anchor into position beneath a rail base. The rear of rail clamp 67 is formed with an extension 69, and a bracket 70 is pivotally supported thereon by a pin 71. A member 72 extends upwardly from .bracket 70 through a lug 73 carried on sideplate 50. The upper end of member 72 is threaded, and an adjustment nut 74 is threaded thereon against the upper sur face of lug 73. A spring 75 is placed 40 bracket 70 and lug 73 in surrounding relationship with member 72. The function of spring 75 is to force the forward end or nose of rail clamp 67 into contact with the bottom of the rail base and to urgeanchor support shelf 67' on clamp 67 toward the rail base as the anchor is moved into position beneath the rail and pressed onto the rail base. Thus, as rail clamp 67 slides beneath the rail base, spring 75 is compressed and tends to force the nose against the bottom of the base in the manner shown in FIG. 9 of the drawings. When the nose of the rail clamp clears the outside edge of the rail base, it is forced upwardly by spring 75 so as to extend above the edge of the rail base. Horizontal force on the anchor by plate 66 of press bar 60 will move the anchor in a substantially horizontal direction to spring the arcuate portion of the anchor embracing the inside edge of the base and permit the lip on the opposite end of the anchor to snap into position over the outside edge of the rail base in the manner shown in FIG. of the drawings.

An anchor press bar adjusting rod 76 is pivotally attached to press bar 60 adjacent bracket 62 by a lug 77 and a pin 78. The upper end of rod 76 extends through a lug 79 attached to plate 50 and is threaded to receive a nut 80. The nut can be adjusted along the threaded end of the rod to control the amount of rotation of press bar 60 about pin 61 and thereby control the force applied to the anchor by plate 66. This adjustment arrangement prevents overpressing of the anchor which could cause damage to the rail base and/or the anchor. Nut 80 is adjusted in accordance with the type of anchor and the size of the rail base.

As can be best seen in FIGS. 11, 12 and 1 1, an anchor holddown mechanism is carried on plate 50 for retaining an anchor on shelf 67' of rail clamp 67 during movement of the clamp from the upper anchor loading position to the lower anchor pressing position. The arrangement shown includes a member 81 having a bifurcated end and pivoted at its other end about pin 82 carried on plate 50. A rod 83 is pivotally attached to member 81 by a pin 84 and extends upwardly through a lug 85 on plate 50. A spring 86 is located around the upper end of rod 83 between lug 85 and a nut 87 on rod 83. Spring 86 biases the bifurcated end of member 81 downwardly so that it embraces anchor A and holds it firmly against shelf 67'. The anchor holddown arrangement is omitted from FIGS. 6-9 of the drawings for simplicity. The specific anchor holddown mechanism of FIGS. 10-12 is used with a Fair anchor such as shown in FIG. 19, but it is to be understood that a holddown mechanism having an appropriately shaped contact surface on member 81 will be used with each type of anchor. For example, the holddown mechanism shown in FIG. 14 is used with a Unit anchor such as shown in FIG. 16.

A head swing cylinder 90 having rod 91 is located between the anchor press heads. The end of rod 91 is connected to bracket 92 on a cantilever member 93 carried on arm 22 of the rear head 30, and the end of cylinder 90 is connected to a bracket 94 carried on a cantilever member 95 attached to plate 51 of head 30. The head swing cylinder rotates heads 29 and 30 about head pivot rod 34. When rod 91 is in the contracted position shown in FIGS. 6 and 10 of the drawings, heads 29 and 30 will be pivoted about rod 34 so that the rail clamp 67 is in position to receive an anchor (FIG. 6) or in position beneath the rail flange with the anchor pressed into position (FIG. 10). When rod 91 is extended from cylinder 90,

heads 29 and 30 pivot about rod 34, and rail clamp 67 is in the head raise and lower position of FIGS. 7 and 8.

The mechanism for squeezing the anchors against the sides ofa tie is shown in FIG. 3 of the drawings. This mechanism includes head pivot rod 34 and parallel rod 35. Rods 34 and 35 extend through both heads 29 and 30, and forward head 29 is movable along the rods on elongated collars 52 while head 30 is fixed against longitudinal movement along the rods. As explained heretofore, the rods are connected by link 36. Link 36 carries a lug 37 which is attached to a hydraulic cylinder 38 by a pin 39. Rod 40 of cylinder 38 is attached to a lug 41 on plate 50 of head 29 by a pivot pin 42. When rod 40 is extended from the cylinder 38, forward head 29 is moved toward rear head 30 along rods 34 and 35 until the anchor carried in clamp 67 of the forward head contacts the tie face as shown in FIG. 4. The machine is floating at this time since the brakes are not set, and continued extension of rod 40 moves the machine forward along the track until the anchor carried by rear head 30 abuts the opposite tie face as shown in FIG. 5. At this point, continued extension of rod 40 forces the anchors carried by both heads into firm engagement with the tie faces. The anchors are now hung on the rail flange and subsequently pressed into engagement with the flange. When only one anchor is used, the apparatus operates in the same manner except that one face of the tie is contacted by rail clamp 67 instead of by an anchor.

After the anchors have been pressed into position by the press bars, the heads are raised into the anchor-receiving position of FIG. 6. The rod 40 is then contracted into cylinder 38 to move head 29 away from the tie face and relieve the force on head 30.

As can be seen in FIGS. 1, 3 and 13, a derail bar 96 is pivotably mounted on rod 23 adjacent to arm 22 of rear head 30. The bar carries a lug 97, and a rod 98 is pivotally connected to lug 97. Rod 98 extends upwardly and passes through a bracket carried on arm 22. The upper end of rod 98 is threaded, and adjustment nuts 99 are connected thereto so that rotation of arm 22 about rod 23 will rotate bar 96. The purpose of the derail bar is to prevent the machine from moving away from the rail upon which the anchors are being applied by an amount sufficient to place the opposite wheel flanges into contact with the opposite railhead (RL in FIG. 13) when a horizontal force is applied to the anchors by anchor press bars 60. For this purpose, a right angle hook portion 100 is formed on the end of bar 96. The book portion overlies the railhead during anchor pressing. In its normal position, the hook portion does not contact the railhead when anchor press heads 29 and 30 come into position since the derail bar contacts a stop member 101 carried on center frame rail 3. The only time hook portion 100 will contact the railhead is when excessive pressing force is exerted on the anchor tending to force the machine away from the anchor-receiving rail. Thus, the derail bar prevents bending of the wheel axles and derailing ofthe machine.

The embodiment shown in FIGS. 6-12 which has just been described is utilized with anchors requiring a horizontal force to press them into position on the rail flange. This type of pressing force is required for the Fair, Gautier, Tru-Temper and Reliance anchors shown respectively in FIGS. 19, 20, 21 and 22. The embodiment shown in FIG. 14 is used with the Unit, Woodings and double-U anchors shown in FIGS. 16, 17 and 18 which require a vertical pressing force.

The majority of the parts in the embodiment of FIG. 1'4 are identical with parts in the embodiment of FIGS. 612, and like reference numerals are used to identify like parts in these figures. As can be seen by a comparison of FIGS. 11 and 14, the anchor press bar 60 in FIG. 11 is pivoted on pin 61 which is carried by plates 50 and 51, whereas in FIG. 14, each anchor press bar 192 is pivoted on a pin 103 which replaces pivot pin 68 for rail clamp 67 and is adjacent to the bottom of plate 50. The reason that press bar 102 is pivoted at a lower point on plate 50 than press bar 60 is that bar 102 exerts a vertical upward force on the bottom of the anchor to press it into position on the rail base. Press bar 102 is formed with a clamp portion 104 having plate 105 which engages the bottom of the anchor to support it during travel from the loading position to the press position and to press it onto the rail base. A rail contact member 107 is attached to plate 50 in this embodiment, and this member contacts the head of the rail when the anchor is driven upwardly.

The anchor holddown mechanism used with the embodiment of FIG. 14 is the same as described heretofore except that member 81 has a rounded end 106. The end is founded since it contacts a Unit anchor of the type shown in FIG. 16.

A hydraulic circuit for operating both embodiments of our invention is shown schematically in FIG. of the drawings. The circuit includes a hydraulic fluid tank 110 with an outlet conduit passing through a filter 111 to a double pump 112 and 113. The circuit also includes a plurality of well known combination choke and check valves 120, relief valves 121, a solenoid operated valve 116, a three-bank multiunit solenoid operated valve 122 having banks designated 117, 118 and 119 and cylinders 24, 38, 63 and 90. Fluid is forced to the various cylinders by pumps 112 and 113 which are driven by engine 6, and fluid is returned to tank 110 from valves 116 and 122 through conduits 114 and 115.

In operation of our device, the machine is moved along the track until the operator arrives at a tie which is to be anchored to the rail at which point the machine brakes are actuated to stop the machine with the heads 29 and 30 on opposite sides of the tie. An anchor is loaded into each rail clamp 67 with the heads in the position shown in FIG. 6 of the drawings. By means of controls on console 12, the operator actuates an electric circuit (not shown) including solenoid valves 116 and 122 shown in FIG. 15. First, valve 116 permits fluid to pass into cylinder 90 to extend cylinder rod 91 to rock the heads into the position shown in FIG. 7 of the drawings. Next, bank 117 of valve 122 passes hydraulic fluid into cylinder 24 to contract rod 25 and lower the heads into the position shown in FIG. 8 of the drawings. Valve 116 now passes hydraulic fluid to cylinder 90 to contract rod 91 and move the anchor carrying rail clamps through the position shown in FIG. 9 into the position of FIG. 10. With the anchors in the position shown in FIG. 10, bank 119 of valve 122 passes hydraulic fluid to cylinder 38 to extend rod 40 and squeeze the anchors into contact with the faces of the tie following the sequence shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. The machine is floating on the track, and both anchors are drawn into firm engagement with the faces of the tie. Bank 118 of valve 122 now permits fluid to pass to both cylinders 63 to extend rods 64 to rotate anchor press bars 60 to press the anchors onto the rail base. The next step in the cycle is to simultaneously force hydraulic fluid into the upper ends of cylinders 24 and 90 to extend the cylinder and retract the empty rail clamps from beneath the rail flange. The choke and check valves in the conduits supplying cylinder 24 slow the action of cylinder 245 so that even though banks 116 and 117 of valve 122 are actuated simultaneously, cylinder 90 acts first and begins to swing clamp 67 downwardly before cylinder 24 begins to rotate the head upwardly. After the heads are in the raised position of FIG. 6, fluid is passed to the left-hand end of cylinder 38 to contract rod 40 and move the anchor carrying shoes apart.

It will be readily apparent that our invention provides a unique apparatus for applying rail anchors on one or both sides of a tie. The application of the anchors according to our invention is rapid, accurate and safe. Our apparatus can readily be adapted to apply any unitary anchor regardless of whether a horizontal or a vertical force is required to press the anchor into position on the rail base. This is an important advantage since individual railroads may use different anchors at various points, and by utilizing our apparatus, it is not necessary to have a machine for every type of anchor.

While we have shown and described preferred embodiments of our invention, it should be understood that the invention may be otherwise embodied within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. Apparatus for applying rail anchors to the base of a railroad track rail including a frame having rail wheels mounted thereon for moving the apparatus along the track, an anchor applying assembly, means pivotally mounting said assembly on said frame and first pivot means for pivoting said assembly relative to said frame, an elongated member pivotally mounted on said pivotal'mounting means for said assembly, said member having a hook portion with an end lying over the head of the rail upon which an anchor is to be applied, means extending between said elongated member and said assembly to rotate said elongated member about said pivotal mounting means upon movement of said assembly, and a stop on said frame to limit downward movement of said elongated member about said pivotal mounting means, said assembly including a first anchor press head and a second anchor press head for hanging anchors on the rail base and pressing them into position on the rail base, means mounting both of said heads on said assembly for pivotal movement relative to said assembly and second pivot means for pivoting said heads relative to said assembly, and means mounting said second head for sliding movement relative to said first head, each of said heads including means for carrying an anchor from an anchor loading position to an anchor hanging position and for hanging the anchor on the rail base, and means for pressing the anchor onto the rail base after is has been hung on the rail base, whereby the end of said hook portion of said elongated member contacts the railhead upon excessive force being applied against the anchor by said means for pressing the anchor onto the rail base. 4

2. Apparatus for applying rail anchors to the base of a railroad track rail including a frame having rail wheels mounted thereon for moving the apparatus along the track, an anchor applying assembly pivotally mounted on said frame and first pivot means for pivoting said assembly relative to said frame, said anchor assembly including a first anchor press head and a second anchor press head for hanging anchors on the rail base and pressing them into position on the rail base, means mount both of said heads on said assembly for pivotal movement relative to said assembly and second pivot means for pivoting said heads relative to said assembly, and means mounting said second head for sliding movement relative to said first head, said mounting means comprising a first rod carried by said assembly and extending through said heads and a second rod extending through said heads parallel to said first rod, a link connecting one end of said rods and means extending between said link and said second head adapted to move said second head along said rods relative to said first head to press anchors against a tie, each of said heads including means for carrying an anchor from an anchor loading position into an anchor hanging position'and for hanging the anchor on the rail base, and means for pressing an anchor onto the rail base after it has been hung on the rail base.

3. Apparatus for applying rail anchors to the base of a railroad track rail including a frame having rail wheels mounted thereon for moving the apparatus along the track, an anchor applying assembly pivotally mounted on said frame and first pivot means for pivoting said assembly relative to said frame, said assembly including a first anchor press head and a second anchor press head for hanging anchors on the rail base and pressing the anchors into position on the rail base, means mounting both of said heads on said assembly for pivotal movement relative to said assembly and second pivot means for pivoting said heads relative to said assembly, and means mounting said second head for sliding movement relative to said first head, each of said heads including means for carrying an anchor from an anchor loading position to an anchor hanging position where the anchor is hung on the rail base and means for pressing the anchor onto the rail base when it is in position on the rail base, said means for pressing the anchor onto the rail base comprising and anchor press bar pivotally mounted on said head, one end of said press bar located adjacent to said means for carrying the anchor andadapted to contact the anchor after it is hung on the rail base and press it onto said base and the other end of said press bar being connected to a third pivot means for pivoting said press bar relative to said head, wherein actuation vof said third pivot means forces said one end of said press bar into contact with the anchor hanging on the rail base and presses the anchor completely onto the rail base.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 including means extending between said other end of said bar and said head to control the maximum amount of force applied to the anchor by said bar to prevent overpressing of an anchor onto the rail base.

5. Apparatus as set forth in claim 4 wherein said means to control the force applied to the anchor includes adjustment means to vary the maximum force applicable to the anchor, whereby the maximum force may be varied in accordance with the size of the anchor and the rail base.

6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said means for carrying an anchor is a rail clamp having an anchor support shelf, a pin pivotally mounting said rail clamp on the lower end of said head, and resilient means extending between one end of said rail clamp and said head to urge the other end of said rail clamp upwardly relative to said head.

7. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein each of said heads includes means for holding an anchor in position against said means for carrying an anchor during movement from said anchor loading position to said anchor hanging position.

8. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein each of said heads includes a long side plate and a short side plate spaced from said long plate, said heads being mounted on said assembly with said short plates in facing relationship, said means for carrying an anchor being pivotally mounted at the lower end of said long plate and said means for pressing an anchor being pivotally mounted on both of said plates.

9. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said means for pressing an anchor onto the rail base is a plate on said means for carrying an anchor, said means for carrying an anchor being pivoted on said head to permit said plate to exert a vertical force on an anchor.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3 58 5 936 D d June 22 1971 Inventor) Carl L. Fester et a1 It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 1, line 42, "or", second occurrence, should read hanging line 45, "on" should read of line 61, "hand" should read hang line 62, "0" should read or Column 2, line 22, "152" should read Figs. line 55, before "welded" insert is Column 3, line 13, "40" should read between Column 5, line 10, "founded" should read rounded line 51, after "cylinder" insert rods Column 6, line 26, "is" should read it line 38, "mount" should read mounting line 71, "and" should read an Signed and sealed this 21st day of December 1971.

(SEAL) Attest:

ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Acting Commissioner of Patents EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. Attesting Officer FORM PO-IOSO (10-69) USCOMM-DC GOING-P69 R u s, sovummzur PRINTING OFFICE was 0-300-334 

1. Apparatus for applying rail anchors to the base of a railroad track rail including a frame having rail wheels mounted thereon for moving the apparatus along the track, an anchor applying assembly, means pivotally mounting said assembly on said frame and first pivot means for pivoting said assembly relative to said frame, an elongated member pivotally mounted on said pivotal mounting means for said assembly, said member having a hook portion with an end lying over the head of the rail upon which an anchor is to be applied, means extending between said elongated member and said assembly to rotate said elongated member about said pivotal mounting means upon movement of said assembly, and a stop on said frame to limit downward movement of said elongated member about said pivotal mounting means, said assembly including a first anchor press head and a second anchor press head for hanging anchors on the rail base and pressing them into position on the rail base, means mounting both of said heads on said assembly for pivotal movement relative to said assembly and second pivot means for pivoting said heads relative to said assembly, and means mounting said second head for sliding movement relative to said first head, each of said heads including means for carrying an anChor from an anchor loading position to an anchor hanging position and for hanging the anchor on the rail base, and means for pressing the anchor onto the rail base after is has been hung on the rail base, whereby the end of said hook portion of said elongated member contacts the railhead upon excessive force being applied against the anchor by said means for pressing the anchor onto the rail base.
 2. Apparatus for applying rail anchors to the base of a railroad track rail including a frame having rail wheels mounted thereon for moving the apparatus along the track, an anchor applying assembly pivotally mounted on said frame and first pivot means for pivoting said assembly relative to said frame, said anchor assembly including a first anchor press head and a second anchor press head for hanging anchors on the rail base and pressing them into position on the rail base, means mount both of said heads on said assembly for pivotal movement relative to said assembly and second pivot means for pivoting said heads relative to said assembly, and means mounting said second head for sliding movement relative to said first head, said mounting means comprising a first rod carried by said assembly and extending through said heads and a second rod extending through said heads parallel to said first rod, a link connecting one end of said rods and means extending between said link and said second head adapted to move said second head along said rods relative to said first head to press anchors against a tie, each of said heads including means for carrying an anchor from an anchor loading position into an anchor hanging position and for hanging the anchor on the rail base, and means for pressing an anchor onto the rail base after it has been hung on the rail base.
 3. Apparatus for applying rail anchors to the base of a railroad track rail including a frame having rail wheels mounted thereon for moving the apparatus along the track, an anchor applying assembly pivotally mounted on said frame and first pivot means for pivoting said assembly relative to said frame, said assembly including a first anchor press head and a second anchor press head for hanging anchors on the rail base and pressing the anchors into position on the rail base, means mounting both of said heads on said assembly for pivotal movement relative to said assembly and second pivot means for pivoting said heads relative to said assembly, and means mounting said second head for sliding movement relative to said first head, each of said heads including means for carrying an anchor from an anchor loading position to an anchor hanging position where the anchor is hung on the rail base and means for pressing the anchor onto the rail base when it is in position on the rail base, said means for pressing the anchor onto the rail base comprising and anchor press bar pivotally mounted on said head, one end of said press bar located adjacent to said means for carrying the anchor and adapted to contact the anchor after it is hung on the rail base and press it onto said base and the other end of said press bar being connected to a third pivot means for pivoting said press bar relative to said head, wherein actuation of said third pivot means forces said one end of said press bar into contact with the anchor hanging on the rail base and presses the anchor completely onto the rail base.
 4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 including means extending between said other end of said bar and said head to control the maximum amount of force applied to the anchor by said bar to prevent overpressing of an anchor onto the rail base.
 5. Apparatus as set forth in claim 4 wherein said means to control the force applied to the anchor includes adjustment means to vary the maximum force applicable to the anchor, whereby the maximum force may be varied in accordance with the size of the anchor and the rail base.
 6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said means for carrying an anchor is a rail clamp having an anchor support shelf, a pin pivotally mounting said rail clamp on the lower end of said head, and resilient means extending between one end of said rail clamp and said head to urge the other end of said rail clamp upwardly relative to said head.
 7. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein each of said heads includes means for holding an anchor in position against said means for carrying an anchor during movement from said anchor loading position to said anchor hanging position.
 8. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein each of said heads includes a long side plate and a short side plate spaced from said long plate, said heads being mounted on said assembly with said short plates in facing relationship, said means for carrying an anchor being pivotally mounted at the lower end of said long plate and said means for pressing an anchor being pivotally mounted on both of said plates.
 9. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said means for pressing an anchor onto the rail base is a plate on said means for carrying an anchor, said means for carrying an anchor being pivoted on said head to permit said plate to exert a vertical force on an anchor. 